Art college may land in middle of Fayette

Savannah College of Art and Design may take Rivers Elementary; deal is tied to nearby massive ‘business project’

The Savannah College of Art and Design is looking into opening a specialized campus in rural Fayette County at the current site of Rivers Elementary School off Sandy Creek Road.

The school building and 30 acres of associated land currently are owned by the Fayette County Board of Education.

While SCAD might seem like an unusual fit for Fayette County, the effort is tied directly to a nearby business venture on the horizon, according to Fayette County Commission Chairman Steve Brown. While the school would have a very specific focus, Brown declined to reveal specifics, citing the pending private business deal.

“It is going to give our young people the opportunity to get into some creative technical fields and they will be able to do it locally,” Brown said. “... I was able to see the offerings from SCAD personally and I was absolutely amazed.”

The bonus is that no tax money will be required to fund the SCAD project, Brown said.

“We are getting some of the most cutting edge academic enhancement you could possibly receive,” Brown said. “It’s phenomenal and I am just beside myself and hoping everything falls into place and this thing comes through.”

SCAD has a variety of educational programs ranging from the building arts and communications to design, fashion, digital media, entertainment arts, fine arts and liberal arts.

SCAD has campuses in Savannah, Atlanta, Hong Kong and also Lacoste, France. The Atlanta campus includes a new digital media center that houses academic majors including animation, interactive design and game development, motion media design, visual effects and television production, according to its website.